11/03/2025
DIABETES AWARENESS
November is National Diabetes month – according to the American Diabetes Association, over 38 million Americans have diabetes and nearly 98 million have prediabetes. In the last 20 years, the number of Americans with diagnosed diabetes has more than doubled.
UNDERSTANDING DIABETES
What are the different types of diabetes?
· Type 1
o Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. Most of the time, type 1 diabetes is diagnosed in young people, but it can develop in anyone at any age. Scientists and researchers today aren’t sure how to prevent type 1 diabetes or what triggers it.
· Type 2
o In type 2 diabetes, your body does not use insulin properly. Over time, your pancreas can’t make enough insulin to keep your blood glucose at normal levels. Type 2 diabetes develops most often in middle-aged and older adults but is increasing in young people.
· Prediabetes
o There are no clear symptoms of prediabetes so you may have it and not know it. But before people develop type 2 diabetes, they almost always have prediabetes—where blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes.
· Gestational Diabetes
o Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is diabetes diagnosed during pregnancy. In the United States, GDM occurs in 5-10% of all pregnancies, with rates continuing to rise.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
If you or your loved one is experiencing the following symptoms, reach out to your healthcare provider – early detection and treatment can help decrease complications.
· Urinating often
· Feeling very thirsty
· Feeling very hungry—even though you are eating
· Extreme fatigue
· Blurry vision
· Cuts/bruises that are slow to heal
· Weight loss—even though you are eating more (type 1)
· Tingling, pain, or numbness in the hands/feet (type 2)
DIABETES PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT
· Fitness
o If you have never been active or haven't been active for a while, start slowly. If you feel unsure about your health, talk to your health care team about which activities are safest for you.
o Light walking is a great place to start – and a great habit to incorporate into your life. Walk with a loved one, with your dog, or just by yourself while listening to an audio book.
o Don’t discount your everyday activities. You may be more active than you think. Housekeeping or mowing the lawn counts as activity. Being active is more than just planned exercise – every little bit of movement helps!
· Nutrition
o To better manage your blood glucose (blood sugar), eat at regular times and give your body two to three hours between meals to allow your blood glucose to lower to a desirable level before you eat your next meal.
o The Diabetes Plate can help you manage your blood glucose (blood sugar) by creating a meal with a healthy balance of vegetables, protein, and carbs.
§ Fill half your plate with non-starchy vegetables, such as broccoli, carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, or peppers.
§ Fill one quarter of your plate with lean protein, such as turkey, eggs, fish, beans, cottage cheese, tofu, or hummus.
§ Fill another quarter of your plate with quality carbohydrate foods, like whole grains, dairy products, or fruit.
For more tools, recipe ideas, and information about diabetes, visit the American Diabetes Association website.